Home
›
News
›
Micron delivers phase-change memory to market, super fast smartphone storage nearing

Micron delivers phase-change memory to market, super fast smartphone storage nearing

Posted: 19 Jul 2012, 07:30, by Nick T.

Discuss 8

Micron delivers phase-change memory to market, super fast smartphone storage nearing

Ever wondered how your smartphone magically stores your stuff? Well, inside it is a little piece of silicon – a NAND memory chip, where all the data is being safely kept. A new technology, however, is likely to emerge as an alternative to silicon-based memory chips. It is called phase-change memory (PCM), and the first mass-produced samples are already available from Micron.

The chips that are currently in production are 1Gb (128 megabytes) in size, with an additional 512Mb (64 megabytes) of volatile memory included, which makes them suitable for use in feature phones. Future models, however, will be of greater capacity and might end up being used in smartphones and tablets. What makes the PCM chips better than conventional NAND flash memory is that they can theoretically reach read speeds of 400 megabytes per second. As the technology evolves, it might even replace the kinds of RAM modules that smartphone makers currently use. Last but not least, PCM memory is energy efficient, which should help prolong the battery life of devices it is used in.

For more info about PCM and the way it works, check out the demo video that we have embedded below.

source: Micron via Engadget

Press Release

Micron Announces Availability of Phase Change Memory for Mobile Devices

First PCM Solution in the World in Volume Production

BOISE, Idaho, July 17, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq:MU), one of the world's leading providers of advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced an industry first with high-volume availability of its 45-nanometer (nm) Phase Change Memory (PCM) for mobile devices, featuring 1-gigabit (Gb) PCM plus 512-megabit (Mb) LPDDR2 in a multichip package. As the first company in the world currently offering PCM solutions in volume production, Micron is providing chipset vendors, enablers, and handset manufacturers with a proven product that meets the expanding needs of today's wireless market and paves the way for enhanced features and capabilities.

PCM provides enhanced boot time, simplifies software development and boosts performance with overwrite capability. It also provides very low power consumption and extremely high reliability. In addition, the design-optimizing shared interface between LPDDR2 and PCM is fully compliant with JEDEC industry standards.

Micron's 45nm PCM solution is currently targeted for utilization in feature phones, with a future roadmap aimed at addressing smartphones and media tablets.

"Our commitment to innovation and continued development of advanced products to address the voracious demands of the wireless industry is clear and strong," said Tom Eby, Vice President of the Wireless Solutions Group at Micron. "We are determined to evolve and innovate by continuing to offer the best-tailored solutions for both today's and tomorrow's market requirements."

Micron's PCM product line has established a foothold in the wireless industry, as evidenced by longstanding key relationships with global customers and enablers, ongoing engagement with major device manufactures, and strong cooperation with Intel Mobile Communications, which includes recent PCM qualification.

"Intel's Mobile and Communications Group is at the forefront of new cellular product and technology enablement, and we see great value in Micron's PCM technology," said Stefan Butz, Vice President, Marketing and Product Planning for Intel's Mobile and Communications Group. "With a commitment to innovation and standardization, as well as a long history of cooperation with Intel, Micron is a trusted supplier."

From entry-level phones to high-end smartphones and tablets, Micron supplies virtually every volatile and nonvolatile memory product utilized in wireless devices today, including NOR, NAND, PCM, LPDRAM and e·MMC™ embedded memory, meeting the need for increased performance, expanding storage requirements, mature technology replacement, and package capability.

Discuss8

Apple implements anti-scalping rules in China prior to launch of third-generation 19 Jul
Prev news

Half of Verizon customers now use smartphones 19 Jul
Next news

8 Comments
Follow Following

Options

Want to comment? Please login or register.

1. kamil posted on 19 Jul 2012, 08:06 3 0

I predict in the future that the PCM would be used on high to low and feature phones since is faster and more energy efficient than the current flash memory silicon chips.

2. QWIKSTRIKE posted on 19 Jul 2012, 09:19 0 0

great technology advancement for mobile phones

3. casbah70 posted on 19 Jul 2012, 09:42 0 1

I'm a bit confused about "1Gb (128 megabytes)" and "512Mb (64 megabytes)". 1GB does not equal 128MB and 512MB does not equal 64MB. Some information MUST be missing.

4. wumberpeb posted on 19 Jul 2012, 10:03 1 0

Not sure if there's sarcasm in that statement, but that's not gigabyte or megabytes. Megabits and gigabits. 8 bits in a byte

5. Sparhawk posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:05 2 0

Capitalization is very important.
"Gb" (lower-case b) = gigabit.
"GB" (upper-case B) = gigabyte.
1 GB = 8 Gb.
1 GB = 1024 MB.
1 Gb = 1/8 GB = 1024 MB/8 = 128MB.

7. noim1 posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:22 0 0

I think it means the Transfer rate of 1GB is 128MB & 512mb is 64mb.

8. Sparhawk posted on 19 Jul 2012, 13:37 0 0

@noim1: Did you read the article?
"The chips that are currently in production are 1Gb (128 megabytes) in size, with an additional 512Mb (64 megabytes) of volatile memory included,..."
These are clearly storage sizes, not transfer rates.

This comment is posted in response to #7 Show

This comment is posted in response to #7 Hide

6. axllebeer posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:12 0 0

This is a great advancement in mobile technology. Some time will pass before we see it put to practical use, however with current battery tech reaching it's limits, this is a logical step.

Want to comment? Please login or register.

Samsung Galaxy S4
- Announced: 14 Mar 2013
- OS: Android 4.2.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1900 MHz, Krait 300, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.0 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
Apple iPhone 5
- Announced: 12 Sep 2012
- OS: iOS
- Hardware: Dual core, 1300 MHz, Apple Swift, 1016 MB RAM
- Display: 4.0 inches, 640 x 1136 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1700/2100 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS EV-DO Rev.A EV-DO Rev.B
Samsung GALAXY Note II
- Announced: 29 Aug 2012
- OS: Android 4.1.2 4.1.1
- Hardware: Quad core, 1600 MHz, ARM Cortex-A9, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.5 inches, 720 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 35 hours of Talk Time, 980 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
HTC One
- Announced: 19 Feb 2013
- OS: Android 4.1.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1700 MHz, Krait 300, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 4 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1900)
- Data: LTE HSPA (unspecified) UMTS EDGE GPRS
Sony Xperia Z
- Announced: 07 Jan 2013
- OS: Android 4.1.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.0 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13.1 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 11 hours of Talk Time, 550 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
Google Nexus 4
- Announced: 29 Oct 2012
- OS: Android 4.2.2 4.2.1 4.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 15.3 hours of Talk Time, 390 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
LG Optimus G
- Announced: 28 Aug 2012
- OS: Android 4.1.2 4.0.4
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 15 hours of Talk Time, 335 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE HSPA (unspecified) UMTS EDGE GPRS
Nokia Lumia 920
- Announced: 05 Sep 2012
- OS: Windows Phone 8
- Hardware: Dual core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 1024 MB RAM
- Display: 4.5 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8.7 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 17 hours of Talk Time, 400 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS

Carriers

Manufacturers

Phone tools

Carriers

Manufacturers

Tablet tools

Phone Links

Micron delivers phase-change memory to market, super fast smartphone storage nearing

Share:

Share:

8 Comments Follow Following

1. kamil posted on 19 Jul 2012, 08:06 3 0

2. QWIKSTRIKE posted on 19 Jul 2012, 09:19 0 0

3. casbah70 posted on 19 Jul 2012, 09:42 0 1

4. wumberpeb posted on 19 Jul 2012, 10:03 1 0

5. Sparhawk posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:05 2 0

7. noim1 posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:22 0 0

8. Sparhawk posted on 19 Jul 2012, 13:37 0 0

6. axllebeer posted on 19 Jul 2012, 12:12 0 0

Popular stories

Hot Phones

Interesting stories

Make your Samsung Galaxy S4 sound better with Adapt Sound

Samsung officials confirm 5.9-inch Note III will come at IFA

All from Google I/O 2013

Nokia Lumia 925 - thinnest WP8 smartphone to date

The forbidden fruit: 7 great apps Google does not allow on Play store

Google I/O 2013 is coming, but what will it bring?

10 great personalization apps for Android

Verizon's Nokia Lumia 928 vs AT&T's Nokia Lumia 920

8 Comments
Follow Following